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Which Hit Taylor Swift Song Are You?

Come on, you know the one.

By Jillian SpiridonPublished 3 years ago 12 min read
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Image still from "Cardigan" music video via Taylor Swift YouTube channel

Disclaimer: I'm not a Swiftie. I mean, sure, I fell in love with the sister albums Folklore and Evermore when they were released in 2020. I don't follow Taylor Swift's social media religiously, but I find it fun that she throws clues and Easter eggs to her fans about what she's up to creatively. I admire that she's so influential and prominent with the lyrics she writes and the moods she evokes with her music.

Taylor also seems like a pretty cool person. I wouldn't mind chatting with her about her creative process, and she inspires me a lot with my own outlets through writing.

I go back to her music a lot when I'm struggling with processing things in my life.

I mean...wait...

OH MY GOD, I'M A SWIFTIE.

...but maybe that's not such a bad thing? I mean, the media doesn't focus on her love life obsessively like they once did. The music and artistry actually seem to be in the spotlight now (for good reason).

If you're a Taylor Swift fan, then I hope you can kick back and read through this list with a grin on your face. If you're a normie, then maybe I can indoctrinate you with your perfect pairing from a list of Taylor Swift's hit songs (well, some of them).

Grab your cardigan, and let's get to the fun stuff: the songs!

If you like exuding an air of mystery to the universe at large...

then "Willow" (Evermore, 2020) should be on your radar.

There's no question about it: "Willow" feels a lot like a love song steeped in gothic and supernatural moods. The vibes from the song paint this picture of a tug-and-pull relationship that might even be a bit star-crossed. Yet there's a vague quality there too for you to interpret as you see fit.

Wait for the signal and I'll meet you after dark

Show me the places where the others gave you scars

Now this is an open-shut case

Guess I should've known from the look on your face

Every bait and switch was a work of art

If you're the type of person who keeps your emotions close to your chest, then I think you might come away from this song feeling like you've seen a phantom of what you emit to the world yourself. Taylor's lyrics give off this narrative that she wants to know and accept the person in front of her—but he's not letting her in deep enough. And, no matter how she bends to accommodate him, he's still standing at a distance.

I can relate because I too stand at a distance from other people. There were times when people held out their hands to me, and I didn't take the chances they offered me.

If you're that kind of person too, you may get where I'm coming from—and how "Willow" feels a lot like a plea to be closer to a closed-off individual.

If you're constantly thinking about that high school sweetheart who got away...

then "You Belong With Me" (Fearless, 2008) belongs on the soundtrack to your life.

And honestly? "You Belong With Me" would probably be on most people's soundtracks to their teen years. There's always one person you think back on and maybe even pine for, no matter how much time progresses. The "one that got away" is a popular trope for a reason.

If you could see that I'm the one

Who understands you

Been here all along

So, why can't you see?

You belong with me

But time moves on. You move on. Maybe you get married and have kids and start the quintessential life that everyone is supposed to want. In the back of your mind, though, there's that one face that won't go away...

You wasted your time and your tears on that person, and they stay in your head rent-free because you always wonder, "What if...?" It's so much easier to imagine a better life, a better relationship, than what we have in the present.

Still, you can't keep hold of a memory forever. There are places to see, people to love, relationships to forge, lives to explore.

You lock away that person in a box in your mind and maybe hope that someday you'll forget that the box is even there.

That person belonged with the "you" of long ago, not the "you" of today.

If you're the angsty artist looking to be poetic...

then "Teardrops on My Guitar" (Taylor Swift, 2006) is probably your jam.

I think Taylor has always had a keen way of lyricizing her emotions into fine fragments of songs that resonate because, in many ways, they're often quite universal. Even her early songs have this vibrancy to them because they just ring so true.

He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar

The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star

He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do

There's just something very poetic about the way she frames moments and immortalizes them in songs. "Teardrops on My Guitar" may not make you into a teen girl pining for a guy named Drew as she looks up at a starry sky, but the feelings bleed through nonetheless. You've been there, wishing someone would look at you just a little bit differently. And maybe you've even written down those emotions in a diary, a journal, a blog post.

Maybe someday those words will find new life in another form. Maybe you're more of a poet than you thought. Maybe your writing is more than just a phase in your life.

Maybe it's a gateway.

If you're a person who's all about the drama in your life...

then "Blank Space" (1989, 2014) should be your showstopper number.

Taylor knows how to dramatize her life to best effect—and maybe you do too! She recognized how the media loved to pull apart her love life for every shred of clickbait, and she utilized that fascination into a hit song that's become an earworm ever since its first plays on the radio.

So it's gonna be forever

Or it's gonna go down in flames

You can tell me when it's over, mmh

If the high was worth the pain

Got a long list of ex-lovers

They'll tell you I'm insane

'Cause you know I love the players

And you love the game

Maybe you don't have the fame or the fortune, but I'm guessing you find your spotlight wherever you go. Bask in it. Be your confident self. And haters gonna hate, so you may as well have fun strutting your stuff.

At the end of the day, you live with yourself the most, so embrace the good and the bad—and even the crazy. Realize your strengths and your weaknesses. Take charge in the ways you know how.

You're the leading role in the story of your life, so don't let someone else steal your thunder along the way.

If you make more enemies than friends in life...

then "Look What You Made Me Do" (Reputation, 2017) is your go-to villain song.

Sometimes you gotta make someone pay through the lyrics of a song. You can't subtweet everything, can you? And everyone needs an anthem—even the bad guys. Or the supposed bad guys. Antihero(ine), maybe? The lines are all blurred...

The world moves on, another day another drama, drama

But not for me, not for me, all I think about is karma

And then the world moves on, but one thing's for sure

Maybe I got mine, but you'll all get yours

Playing nice gets old after a while. You get stepped on. You try to take the high road, but then you get stuck in the mud. People look down on you and laugh. And, whether you like it or not, something starts to awaken inside you.

It's anger. It's a thirst for revenge. It's a scream for absolution.

If other people are going to make you the villain, then so be it. All you know is that you want justice for having been wronged.

"Karma's a bitch," as the saying goes.

If you're one of those people who fall for the bad boys/girls every time...

then "I Knew You Were Trouble" (Red, 2012) is your new anthem.

You like the smirk, the dark hair, the swagger, the confidence. It's so easy to fall into the eyes of someone who knows that being bad is so much more appealing than being good. While you may never be able to keep this bad boy/girl, the thrill of the chase is enough. And maybe you can keep him/her—at least for a little while.

I knew you were trouble when you walked in

So shame on me now

Flew me to places I've never been

Now I'm lying on the cold hard ground

But the bad boy/girl always leaves. Maybe he/she found another love to pursue. Maybe he/she is settling down—just not with you. And your heart starts to break into pieces that will take a long time to glue back together.

You tell yourself, "Never again"...until another carefree smile along with a smoldering gaze turn in your direction.

"Oh no...here we go again."

Your heart may not listen, but your head knows all too well where this is going...

If you're a romantic from the tips of your toes to the roots of your hair...

then "Lover" (Lover, 2019) is the song for you.

It takes a certain kind of vulnerability to admit you love someone—and even more to invite that someone into the concreteness of your daily life. You have to learn compromise as you wade through a relationship that is becoming "serious" in the vein that it may just last a lifetime. Heady stuff, right?

Can I go where you go?

Can we always be this close?

Forever and ever and

Take me out

And take me home

You’re my, my, my, my...

Lover

But the romance doesn't always linger—or, rather, it may get uprooted by the drudge of everyday life. Recapturing the spark and keeping it alive become the goal, and it's not easy—not even for the romantic at heart.

If you're a romantic still looking for your Person, then I think you'll hear the strains of "Lover" a bit differently than someone, say, who's been in a relationship for 10+ years (or more). The fairy tale doesn't exist—though pieces of it can come alive at certain moments and make you all the more optimistic when it comes to love.

But if you are the romantic—then protect your heart. Even someone you love can leave a bruise or two from a wayward, thoughtless word said in the heat of the moment.

And there will be times when you just have to learn to walk away too.

If you're the easygoing type who lets everything slide off your back...

then "Shake It Off" (1989, 2014) is your battle cry.

Haters to the exit door, thank you very much! If you can face down your naysayers with a knowing grin on your face, then you are much stronger than I've ever been. One bad comment on social media can be enough to do me in.

But not you! You let it all slip away because you've got this. No one will have the power to bring you down—not today, not tomorrow, not ever!

Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play

And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate

Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake

I shake it off, I shake it off

If only the world had your kind of stamina, there would probably be no war. And maybe then the anger would fade, tensions would die, and all would be at peace. Wouldn't that be a nice world to live in?

But not everyone can "shake it off"—and that's why we can't have nice things.

If you're the one who always faces off with the trolls online...

then "You Need to Calm Down" (Lover, 2019) suits you perfectly.

Social media can be a war zone, and no one knows that better than a person who fends off trolls on a daily basis. There are just some people out there who cannot stand to see the success and triumphs others are experiencing. Some people live for just tearing others down to make themselves feel better.

Oh you need to calm down

You’re being too loud

And I’m just like ohh

You need to just stop

Like can you just not

Step on my gown

You need to calm down

If you butt heads against the trolls out there—then you are a blessing. You are the 21st century versions of knights fighting dragons (though we like dragons; we don't like trolls on the internet). Thank you for trying to make the internet a safer place. We appreciate you being the cyber warriors you are.

Now if only you could make the real, offline world a better place too...

If you're just trying to figure out life and love and what everything means to you...

then "Cardigan" (Folklore, 2020) might be a great song for you.

I know. We're all trying to figure out life and love and what everything means to us. "Cardigan" is about those moments in life that exist like snapshots in our minds. The lost love, the bygone era, the whimsical feeling of what it means to cherish someone and that time you share with that person—they're all universal pieces, in a sense, even if the window dressings and settings are different.

And when I felt like I was an old cardigan

Under someone's bed

You put me on and said I was your favorite

Go out into the world and find the one who makes you feel like you're their "favorite"—no matter if that's a family member, a partner, a lover, a friend, etc. Someone out there looks at you like you're the sun, moon, and stars.

And you're not as unloved as you may believe.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to do some more soul-searching—so maybe I should rev up Spotify and listen to Fearless (Taylor's Version) again. Who knows, you may get another Swiftie article from me!

~~~

If you enjoyed this article, please consider leaving a heart before you go. You can also find more blather over on my profile page. I promise I'm not usually this wordy. Thanks for reading!

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About the Creator

Jillian Spiridon

just another writer with too many cats

twitter: @jillianspiridon

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